Patrick Brian Warfield (born 2 April 1946, Holles Street, Dublin) is the vocalist, banjo, harp and bodhrán player and lead songwriter with long-standing Irish band The Wolfe Tones.[1] Brian introduces many of the songs at the Wolfe Tones live concerts and is a keen historian.
Personal life
Brian Warfield was born on 2 April 1946 in the National Maternity Hospital, Dublin and lived in the Dublin suburb Inchicore.[2] He is one of the founding members and lead singers of the Irish Folk band, The Wolfe Tones.[3] Warfield was the second born in a family of 4 boys. Today, Brian is married to his wife June Warfield (née Radburn) and resides in Blessington, County Wicklow.
As of July 2017, Brian has not communicated with his brother Derek Warfield since he left The Wolfe Tones in 2001, except when Joe Duffy unsuccesfuly tried to get them to resolve their differences on the radio show Liveline in 2009.[4]
In 2019, Warfield was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease,[5] which was later shown to in fact be essential tremor. Despite this, he was still able to perform in 2023 with plans to continue producing new music in 2024.[6]
Career
Warfield has written many songs for the Wolfe Tones, notably "The Helicopter Song", "Irish Eyes" and "My Heart is in Ireland". "Let the People Sing", was written in dedication to those Irish ballad singers who were banned from singing Irish songs. It has been performed by many Celtic and Irish Rebel bands, including Celtic band Charlie and the Bhoys. The song is popular among fans of Celtic F.C. and a version "Let The People Sing" performed by The Malleys, omitting the second verse, is played at Celtic Park on match days.
Warfield's affiliation with Celtic Football Club led to him being asked to write a song for the Club to celebrate its 100th anniversary. As a result, Celtic Symphony was composed; a song popular with many Celtic fans, but controversial due to its chorus. The chorus which features the words "ooh, ah, up the RA" was often seen as a pro-IRA stance, but according to its writer, Brian Warfield, these words were included in the balladic tradition of writing what is observed at the time.
As a songwriter, Warfield's writing is typically a social commentary on Ireland and its issues. For the 2012 album, Child of Destiny, Warfield composed 'Swing A Banker', which is a comical ballad referring to Irish bankers as chickens. The music video was recorded outside the Treasury Building in Dublin. He is currently working on a musical about the famine. He continues to tour with The Wolfe Tones with Tommy Byrne and Noel Nagle.
Bibliography
Warfield, Brian (2018). The Ramblings of an Irish Ballad Singer. Skin Music Publishers. ISBN978-1-9993352-0-5.
